FOXBORO — Our level of concern over Jimmy Garoppolo chucking five interceptions during an OTA practice on Thursday should be?

A. Zilch.

B. Practically zilch.

C. Not sure. Does throwing an interception while wearing shorts and a T-shirt in the first week of June qualify as football?

D. Grave. The reigning Super Bowl champs are obviously doomed.

When Patriots coach Bill Belichick was asked about an uninspiring Garoppolo-run two-minute drill (which looked as though it might have had great difficulty handling the MVC’s seven-on-seven summer passing league), there was no sense of urgency detected in his monotone.

“We do some good things. There are a lot of things we need to work on,” he said.

And you do know, don’t you, that by October 18 at the very latest, Tom Brady, who has been out there practicing away, will be the Patriots’ starting quarterback?

Certainly there is no scarcity of practice time to work on those things to which Belichick alluded. Thursday’s was the Patriots’ sixth OTA (organized team activities) practice in two weeks. They have four more scheduled for next week, leading up to a mandatory veteran minicamp June 16-18. Players will then return in late July for training camp. Even with all this practicing, the Patriots don’t really get rolling until November anyway.

Under the collective bargaining agreement, NFL teams are permitted 10 OTA sessions, so no, the Patriots are not cheating.

OTAs are technically voluntary. But as the head count of 72 players attending on Thursday indicates, you better have a pretty good excuse (usually injury-related) not to volunteer to be out on that practice field.

“Everything we do out here is important,” said Belichick. “Otherwise, we wouldn’t do it, or we should be doing something else.”

Which is exactly what I try to tell fans who insist cameras where they shouldn’t have been and footballs that may have been underinflated did not really provide the Patriots an advantage. Belichick’s Patriots don’t do anything unless they think it helps them.

Back to second-year QB Garoppolo, who may or may not be the Patriots’ starting quarterback to open the season; that’s dependent on Brady’s skills at spinning a good story for the commissioner, or in the courts, while appealing his four-game suspension. Garoppolo could have been lights out in the four OTAs at which the media has not been permitted access. How do we know? The Patriots practice without jersey numbers during OTAs, so maybe that really wasn’t even Garoppolo throwing those five picks on Thursday.

This is the time of year, though, before the Patriots’ begin their inevitable march to at least the AFC title game, when a jaded sportswriter exaggerates deficiencies, suggesting they could turn a reigning Super Bowl champ into an 8-8 ballclub. The Patriots did lose invaluable cornerback Darrelle Revis to the Jets as a free agent and didn’t bring back cornerback Brandon Browner, now a Saint, and last month released Kyle Arrington. They look pretty thin there. Cornerback Malcolm Butler, hero of the Super Bowl, has not participated in the two practices open to the media.

Devin McCourty, leader of the secondary, would prefer to remain at safety rather than return to cornerback, the position he played entering the league in 2010. But he realizes that’s a coach’s decision.

“This time of year, it’s always highly competitive,” McCourty said after Thursday’s practice. “Even last year, you bring in a bunch of new guys (Revis and Browner in particular) that were great players, it was still really competitive. Everybody wants to play.”

Certainly the champs’ running backs aren’t all that imposing either, even when factoring in the position’s devalued role in the NFL.

Shane Vereen and Stevan Ridley left in free agency, leaving LeGarrette Blount, who last year left in free agency only to gripe his way out of Pittsburgh and back to New England, as the leader in the clubhouse to be the Patriots’ No. 1 back.

The 6-foot-1, 245-pound Blount is at least worth having around to unleash on the Colts in the playoffs. He has rushed for 314 yards and seven touchdowns in two playoff games versus Indy as a Patriot.

Blount will be suspended for the season-opener against the Steelers for having violated the league’s substance-abuse policy. He was with Steelers teammate Le’Veon Bell last August when police found marijuana in Bell’s car during a traffic stop.

“I’m just moving on and trying to work hard and making sure I’m ready for whenever I can play,” said Blount.

“I don’t know who are No. 1 back is,” said Blount. “I just know I’m going to work my butt off to maximize my chances of being that guy.”

So secure are they in their brilliance, the Patriots on Saturday spent a fifth-round draft pick (166th overall) on a long-snapper from the U.S. Naval Academy. The Patriots made Joe Cardona from El Cajon, Cal., the first Navy player to be picked in the NFL draft in 20 years, and just the fourth pure long-snapper ever chosen.

Cardona owes five years’ service to the U.S. Navy, so he will need a special exemption or an accommodating assignment to snap the ball for the Patriots this fall. But Cardona hits nearly every Bill Belichick soft spot. Belichick’s late dad Steve was a longtime assistant at Navy. Belichick himself was a long-snapper at Wesleyan University (who previously drafted one – Jake Ingram in the sixth round in 2009 out of Hawaii). Cardona in high school even played Belichick’s other favorite sport – lacrosse.

He seems to be Belichick’s Dream Pick.

“I’ve know his history (at the Naval Academy) through just being there at the facility,” said Cardona. “The Belichick Library. A lot of us don’t even know it’s named after his dad. We just assumed it’s named after Coach Belichick.”

“I know it sounds cheesy, but I always grew up watching the Patriots because they’ve been so good forever,” said Cardona.

The only signed long-snapper on New England’s roster is Tyler Ott out of Harvard. Danny Aiken remains a free agent.

Transcript of conference call with University of Texas defensive tackle Malcom Brown, chosen by the Patriots in Thursday’s first round of the NFL draft.

Q: Congratulations, what was your reaction to getting picked by the Patriots?

MB: Thank you. It was very anxious, a very long day and a very long process. I was just ready to get off the board and I just couldn’t wait. All the animosity was building up and it was just all coming down to that last pick, the last pick of the first round. So, I was just ready.

Q: Were you starting to get worried that you weren’t going to get picked in the first round?

MB: I mean there’s always that doubt, you know. When you get down to the last pick and you’re like ‘Aw, man, this team hasn’t really talked to me, this team hasn’t done this and that,’ and it’s just like ‘Aw, man, what does it come down to now?’

Q: What was your contact with the Patriots leading into the draft? Did you think they would pick you?

MB: I mean, it was the same as many teams. I didn’t really get a lot of contact with many teams. That’s the hardest part about this whole process - you never can get a real feel for who likes you or who is thinking about drafting you. That’s the hardest part.

Q: What does it mean to be selected by the defending Super Bowl champions?

MB: It means a lot. You go to a winning team, contributing to something that’s already great and trying to add whatever I can to the program. It’s a great feeling.

Q: Was your maturity and your family situation something that you used as a selling point when you talked to teams?

MB: I mean, not really. I’m real big on family – I love my family. I made a decision to get married and I really wanted that. It’s just somebody to take care of and I’ve done that and I had a child. I’m going to take care of my responsibilities. Every responsibility that I have I’m going to take care of.

Q: What’s the celebration like right now with you and your wife and your two daughters?

MB: Everybody is happy. We know where we were going to be at, so now we can start figuring out a plan to settle in.

Q: How would you describe yourself as a player?

MB: I’m just relentless. I want to be the best there can be and be the best that I can be, so I’m just going to do that when I get there.

Q: Can you talk about the type of player that you consider yourself to be?

MB: You know – a great player. I’m giving my all and you’ll get my all out of me. I’m just going to leave it all on the field.

Q: Comparisons to Vince Wilfork seem inevitable. How much have you watched Wilfork’s game over the last few years?

MB: Not much, but I’m just coming in to contribute a lot to the program. Whatever I can give, whatever the coaches ask of me I’m going to do.

Q: Did the Patriots work you out privately? Did you have any interviews with them – any specific type of individual contact with the Patriots outside of an interview at the combine?

MB: Like I said, any contact I had with the team is like I had with any other team. They talked to me; I talked to them at the combine. Whatever they asked of me I’ve done that. So I just worked at my best.

Q: The Patriots love versatile defensive linemen. Do you consider yourself a versatile lineman? If so, how have you gotten to that point?

MB: I just really focus on being the best that I can be and whatever that calls for I do. The sky is the limit when it comes to me playing. I really don’t want to put a limit on [it]. Whatever I can do and however I can do it; whatever calls for the job I get it done.

Q: Did you ever meet Dominique Easley in high school or recruiting or through any of the processes you’ve been through?

MB: No, I didn’t get to meet him. I bet he’s a great player.

Q: Was there a range that you expected to go in leading up to the draft?

MB: I mean there was always a range. Some people said high. That’s the hardest part about the process also. Some people say high, some people say mid, some people say low. You just have to come to this day and be ready for anything. You’ve got to be ready to drop down to the second round, you’ve got to be ready to jump out of the second round to the third round. You’ve got to come in praying for the best, but expecting the worst.

Q: What was that range? What was the highest you’ve heard?

MB: Seven. They were looking for a three-technique or somebody that could get up the field, but it was seven.

Q: Were you able to have a job while you were at Texas?

MB: Not really. I caught a couple jobs. Whenever they were having camps and stuff, they would let us work the camps. That was about it. Other than that I was always working out and just grinding in the weight room or something.

Q: Have you ever been to Boston?

MB: I have not.

Q: Are you excited?

MB: I am. I am very excited to get in and just get with the program and just get started.

Q: What do you know about Boston?

MB: Celtics. That’s about it.

Q: What do you think is your biggest adjustment to becoming a good pro in the NFL?

MB: Just come in and just work. Don’t come in and just think that I’ve got a place for me. Just come in and just pack my lunch every day and go at it.

Q: What does it feel like to play for a winning organization, with legends like Tom Brady and Bill Belichick?

MB: It feels great, just to come in and, like I said, contribute to the program, add in what I can and just go for another one next year.

Q: Do you know your schedule yet for when you come to New England?

MB: I do not yet. I’m still waiting on that. We’re still communicating between each other and we’re trying to get that planned out and stuff.

Q: Where did you watch the draft tonight?

MB: I’m back here in Austin with family and we’re watching the draft here.

Q: Did you have a big party or just keep it small?

MB: It was just family that came; family and friends that I feel like helped me get to where I am now. We all came out, we all had fun and watched the draft together.

Q: What do you consider the biggest strength of your game?

MB: I don’t know if there is a [particular] strength. Whatever I’m asked to do, I’m going to do that and, like I said, just try to give it my all. That’s all I can do right now, just come in with the right mindset, chip into the program and try to get somewhere, try to help out the program, not just sit on the sidelines.

Q: Is there any place along the defensive line you like the most?

MB: I like them all. I can play every position. I was pretty good at every position. Wherever he wants me to play, that’s where I’m going to be at, and I’m going to give it my all.

Q: Did you guys play straight 4-3 at Texas or did you mix it up?

MB: We played 4-3, 3-4 all my years here. I played nose-technique, three-technique, defensive end. It doesn’t matter.

Q: Were you following along on Twitter at all? It was reported that the Patriots traded out of that pick. Were you aware of that?

MB: No, I did not see. I was not aware. I really didn’t follow it a lot. I wasn’t even expecting to get picked up by the Patriots. It happened, and I’m glad it happened and I’m just going to go in and go to work.

Q: Did Bill Belichick call you? Is that how you found out?

MB: His assistant called me first and then I talked to him after him.

Q: Which assistant was it?

MB: I can’t remember his name right now.

Q: Do you remember what Bill Belichick said to you?

MB: He was like, ‘Congratulations. You’re a Patriot.’

Q: He’s a man of few words, huh?

MB: Yeah.

Q: A lot of first round picks don’t make it, but you sound like a guy who knows you have to earn everything.

MB: I know nothing comes easy. I know I’m going to have to work for everything I want, and I’m prepared to give it my all and work for that. I’m just ready to go to work. I don’t expect anything and I’m going to work for everything.

Q: Do you have any message for Boston fans?

MB: You guys drafted me, so you’re about to get the best player you’ve ever drafted, so just be ready for when I touch the field.

Q: Do you remember working out for or talking to Matt Patricia at your pro day?

MB: I do. He’s a great guy. He didn’t tell me much. I met with him the next day, watched some film and that was it. But he’s a great guy. I liked his attitude and stuff. I liked how high his program was – his defense.

Q: Bill Belichick said you played a little bit more outside this past year than other years. How natural was that switch for you?

MB: It was real natural. I look at it as every position is the same. There’s just a little bit more space as you move further out. But you get in there and you play every position. I know it’s a little different with first step. The three-technique is a different first step and end you’ve got more space on the outside. That’s how I look at it. I learn every position that I have to go through, I get them down and I feel comfortable in those positions so when I do have to play the position, I’ll be good.

Q: It was noted here tonight that Malcolm is a good name to have on the Patriots right now, because of Malcolm Butler at the Super Bowl.

MB: [laughter].

Q: Do you feel any added pressure coming to the Patriots as a first round pick, considering the success they’ve had in the first round in the past?

MB: I don’t. I came to Texas as a five-star recruit. When I got here I knew I wouldn’t get anything easy. So I’m not going in thinking I’ll get anything easy. I know I have to work for anything. Even though I am a first round draft pick, there is a lot of pressure because they put a lot in me. Also, I’m not just going to take this and just sit back and lay back on it. I’m going to work, I’m going to do what I do going into every year of football. I’m going to give it my all and you’re going to get my all.

Q: Do you have any friends on the Patriots or anyone you know?

MB: Not really. Tom Brady.

Q: Did you ever consider attending the draft?

MB: Well you know, I thought about it at one point. Coach [Charlie] Strong had talked to me, my agent had talked to me, but I felt like there are a lot of people who actually helped me get to where I am. I always sat down in high school and looked at the draft and I always told my uncle that I wanted to be here one day. My high school coach that helped me out, I always told him that I wanted to work hard and get somewhere. And they all helped me get to where I am now, so why would I just go there and let so many people that want to be around me at the time of me being drafted … I have to select a few to go with me and then everybody else would be stuck here watching me on screen getting drafted. Why couldn’t we just all be together?

Thinking clearly or not thinking clearly amid a furious finish is all part of the game. Like dropped passes and blown calls by the officials.

So luck had nothing to do with the Patriots winning this Super Bowl. You overcome a 10-point deficit in the fourth quarter against a reigning champ whose defense is historically good – you have put yourself in position to see whether the other coach might crack.

Seattle head coach Pete Carroll and offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell did crack on Sunday night in Glendale. Because they did, Malcolm Butler is a name that will live forever in New England.

Trailing 28-24 and facing second down at New England’s 1-yard line with 26 seconds and one timeout left, the Seahawks turned Marshawn Lynch into Beast Decoy with the Super Bowl on the line. Carroll or Bevell (both took responsibility for the call) instead called a slant pass to Ricardo Lockette. Among the strangest calls in Super Bowl history became the dumbest when Butler, an undrafted rookie cornerback out of Division 2 West Alabama, intercepted Russell Wilson’s pass.

“We had a formation where we could throw on them,” said Wilson. “Lockette was coming underneath and the guy made a great play. That’s really what it comes down to – the guy (Butler) made a great play.”

Butler said he knew the Seahawks were going to throw because Patriots defensive coordinator Matt Patricia “is real smart and with a goal-line three cornerback (formation), we knew they were going to throw the ball.”

Bevell right now doesn’t look so smart. The 45-year-old has the past few years been interviewed for several head coaching jobs, including for Buffalo and Oakland this year. His phone may now stop ringing.

“There are 20 different things going through my mind about what I could do,” he said about making the call he did. “I might see who could run it. Doesn’t mean that’s a score on that play, but we were just making sure that we were conscious of the time. We were making sure that we weren’t leaving very much time for them as well. But we wanted to make sure that we got all of our options on the play.”

Seahawks linebacker Bobby Wagner said. “We’ve got Marshawn Lynch, one of the best running backs in the league. Everybody makes their decisions, and unfortunately, we didn’t give him the ball.”

New England perhaps benefited from Carroll’s gamble at the end of the first half when he risked a certain automatic three points by going for a touchdown with six seconds left. Emboldened by that payoff, Carroll in the end was maybe feeling a little too dangerous. He said the Seahawks didn’t want to waste a run play on the goal line on second down versus New England’s goal-line guys.

“We were going to run the ball to win, but not on that down,” he said.

Carroll said it was his call. One senses he was taking the hits for Bevell, whose offense features a running back they call Beast Mode, who tied for the league lead in rushing touchdowns this season.

Throw the ball? From the 1-yard line? With Marshawn Lynch on your side?

When Patriots cornerback Darrelle Revis was asked whether he was surprised Seattle did not hand the ball to Lynch on that play, “As I look back at it, yeah. I was very shocked and surprised that they threw the ball.”

FOXBORO — Back when Peyton Manning was taking his January lumps as the Colts’ quarterback during New England’s Super Bowl-winning days, it was said that Bill Belichick was inside Manning’s head.

Manning got past his bugaboo by rallying the Colts past the Patriots in the 2006 AFC title game en route to his only ring.

But now it seems it is Andrew Luck’s turn to have the haunting hoodie residing inside his head. Certainly Luck’s team is not as good as the Patriots, which was the true determining factor in New England’s 45-7 victory in the AFC title game on Sunday night.

But Luck again played poorly against New England. He looked skittish out of the gate and wound up completing 12 of 33 passes for 126 yards, zero TDs and two interceptions.

On this rainy and windy night in Foxboro, Luck’s QB rating was 23.0.

“They took away everything,” said Colts wide receiver T.Y. Hilton, who was held to one fantastic sideline catch for 36 yards. “When I tried to go across the middle, they had the linebackers drop. The linebackers hit me to try to disrupt me. It pretty much was the same game plan as last time. They did a pretty good job of taking me away.”

Luck fell to 0-4 all-time versus New England, having thrown six touchdowns and 10 interceptions.

“I think specifically to this game, (because) I haven’t thought too much about the others, they did a good job making plays and we didn’t,” said Luck when asked about his struggles versus New England. “It seemed like they were more on the details and we weren’t. I know my play wasn’t up to par for where it needs to be.”

Colts coach Chuck Pagano said his team’s loss couldn’t be pinned on one player. “It doesn’t all fall, obviously, on the quarterback,” he said. “We’re going to look at the tape and we’ll move on, and we’ll continue to work and grind until we reach that ultimate goal. I’m sure glad we’ve got (Luck) because I probably wouldn’t be having this conversation with you if he wasn’t our quarterback.”

Patriots starting left offensive tackle Nate Solder’s 16-yard catch-and-run after reporting as an eligible receiver on New England’s opening drive of the third quarter seemed to break Indianapolis for good.

Solder was a tight end when he first arrived at the University of Colorado before bulking up into a tackle and first-round draft pick of the Patriots in 2011.

“Nate made a great catch,” said Patriots quarterback Tom Brady. “Tough conditions out there — it’s raining. I mean, for god’s sake he runs over two guys to get in there. He played a little tight end in his first year (of college). So I don’t know, maybe we have more tricks up our sleeve.”

The 6-foot-8, 320-pound Solder with a laugh rated the route he ran as “just proficient.”

“We’ve been practicing (that play) for years,” said Solder. “I did it in college and now here it is.”

“He gave Coach Belichick a lot of confidence in practice running it well,” said center Ryan Wendell. “When they called it, I was excited and I was happy that he got in there (for a touchdown). If it was me, I would have choked. I would have dropped it.”

Pagano said the Colts’ defense did not line up properly on the play. “So credit (the Patriots),” he said.

A young Tom Brady was on Patriots teams that won three Super Bowls in four seasons. Now 37, Brady is going after his first ring in 10 years as he heads to his record sixth Super Bowl. He was asked whether this latest AFC champion Patriots squad is the most well rounded team he has played on.

“It’s hard to compare year to year,” said Brady, who on Sunday completed 23 of 35 passes for 226 yards, three TDs and one interception. “I think every situation is different. We’ve had a lot of good teams in the past. This one is going to have to win a very important game to kind of leave our legacy. So we have two weeks to prepare for it. We’re playing a great team (the Seattle Seahawks).”

In his eighth season, and playing for his third team, cornerback Darrelle Revis is finally going to the Super Bowl. This is why Revis signed with the always-knocking-at-the-door Patriots as a free agent last March. He lost in the AFC title game twice as a Jet.

“Eight years later for me (after being a first-round draft pick of the Jets in 2007) is very surreal,” said Revis. “It’s pretty awesome.”

Revis was this season selected to the Pro Bowl for the sixth time in his career. The Patriots also reportedly have filed tampering charges against Jets owner Woody Johnson for comments he made about wanting Revis back. Revis is likely to become a free agent after this season.

Brandon Browner, the Patriots’ other celebrated cornerback free-agent signing last March, will be going up against his former team, the Seahawks, in Super Bowl XLIX.

“It’s crazy man,” said Browner. “I really had that vision when I signed here. Hopefully we’d meet up with my old boys. And it happened to work out that way.”

New England tight end Rob Gronkowski, who rebounded from an injury-plagued 2013 season to lead all NFL tight ends in receiving yards in 2014, was selected as the 2014 NFL Comeback Player of the Year, chosen in voting conducted by the Professional Football Writers of America (PFWA).

Pittsburgh running back Le’Veon Bell, who was second in the NFL in rushing yards and led the league in receiving yards by a running back, was selected as the 2014 NFL Most Improved Player of the Year.

Gronkowski missed all of training camp and the first six games of the 2013 season with a back injury. He also suffered a knee injury in Week 15 and was placed on Reserve/Injured prior to the final game of the regular season. Gronkowski’s 39 catches for 592 yards and four touchdowns in 2013 was the lowest output of his career. Back to full health in 2014, he caught 82 passes for 1,124 yards and 12 TDs in 15 games to earn All-Pro honors from the PFWA.

Gronkowski reached 1,000 receiving yards for the second time in his career. He led all NFL tight ends in receiving yards, receiving yards per game at 74.9 and tied for first with 12 TDs. He also paced all NFL TEs with 60 receiving first downs and 10 receptions of 25 yards or more. Gronkowski had three 100-yard receiving games, including a career-high-tying nine catches for a season-high 149 yards and tied a career high with three TDs against Chicago in a 51-23 victory in Week 8. The following week, he had nine receptions again for 105 yards in a 43-21 victory against Denver. He scored a receiving touchdown in 10 of his 15 games.

Gronkowski is the third member of the Patriots organization to receive Comeback Player of the Year honors joining wide receiver Randy Moss (2007) and quarterback Tom Brady (2009).

The Patriots on Tuesday will put on sale a limited number of tickets for Sunday’s AFC title game versus the Indianapolis Colts at Gillette Stadium.

After fulfilling orders for season ticket holders and wait-list members, what tickets remain will be made available to the public through Ticketmaster beginning at 10 a.m. on Tuesday. Visa will be the only accepted form of payment. No tickets will be sold at the Gillette Stadium ticket office.

Ticket orders can be processed either online at www.ticketmaster.com or by calling 800-745-3000. Individual ticket prices range from $129 to $299.

Baltimore Ravens coach John Harbaugh said nobody, including the officials, had ever seen what the Patriots pulled off on Saturday — having usually eligible receivers (running back Shane Vereen or tight end Michael Hoomanawanui) declared ineligible and lining up four offensive linemen.

Three times during a Patriots third-quarter scoring drive, which cut Baltimore’s lead to 28-21, the Ravens’ defense was tossed into total confusion. Referee Bill Vinovich even announced to the Ravens over the stadium’s loudspeakers to not cover “No. 47″, Hoomanawanui.

But they did anyway.

Brady completed passes to uncovered receivers the three times the Patriots used the formation on their way to a 35-31 victory.

“It’s a substitution type of a trick type of thing,” said Harbaugh, “so they don’t give you the chance to make the proper substitutions and things like that.”

The Ravens’ sideline received an unsportsmanlike-conduct penalty debating the legality of the ploy. NFL defenses are supposed to be permitted a fair chance to adjust to offensive substitutions.

“We wanted an opportunity to be able to ID who the eligible players were,” said Harbaugh. “Because what they were doing was they would announce the eligible player and then … they would go over and snap the ball before we even had the chance to figure out who was lined up where — and that was the deception part of it. And that was where it was clearly deception.”

Harbaugh said he took the unsportsmanlike penalty to get the officials’ attention to what was happening. “And they said that that was the right thing, that they’d give us the chance to ID the eligible receivers so we could actually get them covered,” said Harbaugh. “That’s why guys were open, because we didn’t ID where the eligible receivers were at.”

Harbaugh said the officials “didn’t really understand what was happening.”

Asked if he considered the Patriots’ ploy cheap or dirty, Harbaugh said, “I’m not going to comment on that.”

We obviously knew what we were doing, and we made some pretty important plays,” said Brady.

Patriots coach Bill Belichick said, “It’s a play that we thought would work. We ran it three times, a couple different looks. We had six eligible receivers on the field, but only five were eligible. The one who was ineligible reported that he was ineligible. No different than on the punt team or a situation like that.”

The NFL no doubt will take a closer look at what the Patriots did. But even if the league sides with Harbaugh, it does the Ravens no good now. That Belichick is a genius. And his Patriots are off to the AFC title game.